Author: Pastor Robin Tyner
Prayer is one of those things that’s more caught than taught. I’m convinced that Jesus influenced the disciples more by His model in prayer than through His messages of prayer. We see a hint of this in Luke 11:1, “One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples to him, ‘Lordteach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.’”
There were numerous times the disciples saw Jesus get away and spend time with His Heavenly Father. I find it fascinating of all the amazing things the disciples watched Jesus do, the only thing they asked Him to teach them was to pray. His example led to their hunger to learn. Watching Him pray gave them a thirst to do it themselves.
As a young boy my father had a big influence on me when it came to prayer and reading the Bible. One of my early memories is seeing Dad sitting on our brown couch, in his white T-shirt, reading his black Bible. When he finished reading he’d close his eyes and pray. That image is forever settled in my mind, and I’m grateful for his example.
For those who are parents a good question to ask is, “Do my children see me reading my Bible and do they hear me pray?” The example of my Dad praying had a greater impact on me than hearing sermons why I should pray. Someone told me whatever I’d like for my children to do, make sure they see me doing it. That’s good advice. Prayer is more caught than taught, and leading by example is both powerful and lasting
Photo Credit: Cassidy Rowell, Unsplash
